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Monday, October 28, 2013

Vatican
City, 28 October 2013 (VIS) - “Christians and Hindus: fostering
human relationships through friendship and solidarity” is the theme
of the message addressed to followers of Hinduism by Cardinal
Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for
Interreligious Dialogue on the occasion of Deepevali, the feast of
lights, which is celebrated on 3 November this year. The document is
also signed by Fr. Miguel Angel Ayuso Guixot, M.C.C.J., secretary of
the same dicastery.

“In
this highly competitive world where increasingly individualistic and
materialistic tendencies adversely affect human relationships and
often create divisions in families and society as a whole, we wish to
share our thoughts on how Christians and Hindus can foster human
relationships for the good of all humanity through friendship and
solidarity.

“Relationships
are fundamental to human existence. Security and peace in the local,
national and international communities are largely determined by the
quality of our human interaction. Experience teaches us that, the
deeper our human relationships, the more we are able to advance
towards cooperation, peace-building, genuine solidarity and harmony.
In short, the ability to foster respectful relationships is the
measure of authentic human progress and essential for promoting peace
and integral development.

“Such
relationships ought to flow naturally from our shared humanity.
Indeed, human relationships are at the heart of human existence and
its progress and naturally give rise to a sense of solidarity with
others. Regardless of our ethnic, cultural, religious and ideological
differences, all of us belong to the one human family.

“Sadly,
with the increase of materialism in society and a growing disregard
for deeper spiritual and religious values, there now exists a
dangerous trend to accord the same value to material things as to
human relationships, thereby reducing the human person from a
‘someone’ to a ‘something’ that can be cast aside at will.
Furthermore, individualistic tendencies engender a false sense of
security and favour what His Holiness Pope Francis has described as
‘a culture of exclusion’, ‘a throwaway culture’ and ‘a
globalisation of indifference’.

“The
promotion of a ‘culture of relationship’ and ‘a culture of
solidarity’ is thus imperative for all peoples, and calls for the
fostering of relationships based on friendship and mutual respect for
the benefit of the entire human family. This requires a common
recognition and promotion of the intrinsic dignity of the human
person. It is evident then that friendship and solidarity are closely
related. In the end, a 'culture of solidarity means seeing others not
as rivals or statistics, but brothers and sisters' (Pope Francis,
Visit to the Community of Varginha (Manguinhos), Rio de Janeiro, 25
July 2013).

“Finally,
we wish to state our conviction that a culture of solidarity can only
be achieved as 'the fruit of a concerted effort on the part of all,
in service of the common good' (Pope Francis, Meeting with Brazil’s
Leaders of Society, Rio de Janeiro, 27 July 2013). Sustained by the
teachings of our respective religions and aware of the importance of
building genuine relationships, may we, Hindus and Christians, work
individually and collectively, with all religious traditions and
people of good will, to foster and strengthen the human family
through friendship and solidarity”.